Welcome to Edmonton signs had slogans altered

Someone made their own sign and covered up the “City of Champions” with “Road Construction City” on the westbound lanes on Sherwood Park Freeway coming into Edmonton. Michelle Schon/Special to the Edmonton Sun

That's what courier driver Michelle Schon thought while driving by the City of Edmonton welcome sign on the Sherwood Park Freeway.

Someone placed a professionally made sign that read "Road Construction City" in place of the city's infamous "City of Champions" slogan.

Other signs were also altered, including the one on Gateway Boulevard which read, "Suck it Calgary." The city removed the false signs later in the day.

Schon says she did a double-take while driving by the sign the first time. After hearing more about the sign from her dispatch centre, she decided to go back to the location on Sherwood Park Freeway to take a closer look.

"When I saw it, I thought, 'good, I am not losing my mind,'" said Schon, who posed for a picture with the "Construction City" slogan.

"I would not choose it officially for the slogan, but of course, on some level, I would," she said.

So far. no one is taking responsibility for the signs publicly.

City officials say they're not amused, as the prank may have caused some damage.

Holly Budd, a spokeswoman with the city's community safety branch, said the stunt was "unfortunate."

The signs, said Budd, were printed on a construction adhesive that were screwed into the existing signs.

"What the construction guys are saying is the longer it sits on the signs, the more damage it will cause," said Budd.

"Depending on how quickly crews can undo the damage and restore the signs, we will probably have an impact on how much damage there is."

Budd says crews starting getting calls about the signs through the city's 311 hotline service late Tuesday morning.

Leila Daoud, a spokeswoman with Edmonton Police Service, says the pranks are being investigated.

Welcome to Edmonton signs had slogans altered

Maybe someone thought Oct. 1 was April Fool's Day.
That's what courier driver Michelle Schon thought while driving by the City of Edmonton welcome sign on the Sherwood Park Freeway.
Someone placed a professionally made sign that read "Road Construction City" in place of the city's infamous "City of Champions" slogan.
Other signs were also altered, including the one on Gateway Boulevard which read, "Suck it Calgary." The city removed the false signs later in the day.
Schon says she did a double-take while driving by the sign the first time. After hearing more about the sign from her dispatch centre, she decided to go back to the location on Sherwood Park Freeway to take a closer look.
"When I saw it, I thought, 'good, I am not losing my mind,'" said Schon, who posed for a picture with the "Construction City" slogan.